Principals Address – Final Newsletter Article 2024

While last year, being my first year as Principal of our school, was one that I characterised by change, new beginnings and reflection, this year will be remembered as a time in which we defined as a community what highly effective teaching and learning looks like and embedded a culture of engagement and connection for all of our learners. As a staff, I have witnessed a renewed focus on providing high quality teaching and collectively, we have created a professional learning community focused on ongoing improvement. We are committed to providing the best education for every one of our students.

School improvement has moved well and truly into the classroom with implementation Learning By Design, our evidence based pedagogical approach. 2024 also saw the introduction of a genuine Professional Learning Communities culture where teachers met weekly in teams to identify an improvement focus, research and experiment with High Impact Teaching strategies and trial and evaluate new approaches. Feedback from all staff has been extremely positive with many teachers able to identify a direct impact of this work on improving student learning in the classroom. The inclusion of peer observations provided targeted feedback to teachers and leaders. The introduction of a school-wide Moderation of Student Learning approach has ensured greater alignment of teacher judgement, a deeper understanding of the needs of each learner and improved our assessment design.

Our school’s NAPLAN results are once again outstanding, with the majority of our Year 7 and Year 9 students in the ‘strong’ or ‘exceeding’ bands for both Literacy and Numeracy. In almost every measure our school is achieving well above similar schools and is on par or above the state average.

Our VCE results for this year are exceptional. Of the 54 students who sat the VCAA exams, eights students received an ATAR above 90 and another three over 80, which is remarkable. Of the 97 students completing Year 12 this year, 43 chose the VCE_VM or an Unscored pathway, a testament to the positive impact of the individualised Pathways Conversations, ensuring these young people were empowered, informed and proactively chose a pathway into further study upon completion of this year. I think it is widely acknowledged, both at our school and across Victoria, that this cohort of Year 12 students are particularly special. They are focused on their learning, studious and perseverant; they are kind, respectful and caring of one another and towards the adults in their lives; they are optimistic and dream of achieving great things beyond school.

Stage 2 of the re-building of Reservoir High School has finally been completed with the state-of-the-art Science and Technology Centre and new Canteen ready for the school year and will provide our students with outstanding learning spaces as they engage in scientific inquiry and be immersed in technologically rich learning.

There have been so many extra-curricular opportunities for our students to explore their talents and passions. The Performing Arts Night and the Music Showcase were exceptional. The diversity of musical, dance and drama acts and genres ranged from a sophisticated version of Hitchcock’s The 39 Steps, stunning classical pieces to high-energy rock music. All students performed with poise, confidence and skill. On both evenings the Theatre was filled with staff, students and families, all of whom were impressed by the quality of performances.

The production of ‘Matilda’ was a triumph. It was a privilege to watch our students perform live in the Theatre, showcasing the amazing talents and strengths of our students, each who were dynamic, full of vitality and joy when performing. Our Federal Member of Parliament, Ged Kearney, joined me on the evening and we were blown away at the sheer talent and extraordinary performances executed by each cast member.

Just how exceptional our students are was further demonstrated in the outstanding results of our students in the NMR Athletics Competition, in what was a highly competitive field. Our Inter-School Debating Competition competed in the final and were triumphant. Our senior Debating Team, consisting of three Year 11 students - Vivien Tang, Jake Proctor and Jake Chen, competed in the Grand Final in the Lions Club Interschool Debating Competition against Santa Maria College. It was a very close debate and our three students were highly articulate, confident and very persuasive.

Our four School Captains – Ainsley, Charlotte, Dylan and Vittoria, represented our school at the Northern Innovation and Sustainability Precinct Launch at La Trobe University. Our School Captains starred in the project’s film which was introduced at the launch. The new Vice Chancellor of La Trobe University, Professor Theo Farrell, commented on how impressive our students were in showcasing what highly involved, intelligent and insightful young adults look like. Our students are truly remarkable.

A special event took place at the school in Term 4. The Premier of Victoria, the Honourable Jacinta Allen visited and met with a group of Year 9, 10, 11 and 12 students to discuss the new social media ban and seek the input from our students. Premier Allan and Mr Lambert MP held a roundtable with our students to discuss the changes to social media laws, both federally and from the Victorian Government. Our students were so very impressive in their level of insight, self-awareness and deep understanding of the negative impact social media has on our society and in particular, young people. I was equally impressed and in awe of the intelligent, articulate and knowledgeable young people who we have the privilege of teaching.

There is no doubt that our students, whether it be academic, sporting or creative, are capable of remarkable things.

Thank you to our School Captains and all student leaders, including members of the Student Representative Council. You enrich the lives of us all through your dedication to amplifying the voices of all students and work alongside staff and the leadership team to make this school even better. Your work in revisioning the Student Leadership structure at the school from next year onwards has been exceptional and is a testament to your maturity, depth of knowledge and understanding how to enact positive change in our school. I am so heartened to know that you are the changemakers of our future.

I would like to acknowledge the courage and commitment that this year’s Year 12 students have demonstrated. We are very proud of what you have achieved and I wish you all the luck in the world with your continual learning and studies. Please do come back and visit at times, no matter where your paths may go. You will always remain a member of the Reservoir High School community.

Following the conclusion of the learning program and the publishing of the Semester 2 Reports in December, our Year 7-9 students engaged in the School Picnic and an excursion to Fun Fields. They were magnificent days of fun for the staff and students to experience together.

The annual Awards Evening took place last night at The Centre in Ivanhoe, attended by all staff for the first time. The evening commenced with a Year 12 Valedictory celebration, before the Awards ceremony took place. It was a spectacular event in which we could recognise individual student success and celebrate the numerous achievements of our students.

I have felt deeply privileged to lead our school community this year and am enormously proud of who we are and what we stand for at Reservoir High School. I am very much looking forward to returning next year with passion, energy and commitment.

I hope you all have a wonderful summer break and I look forward to welcoming you all back in 2025.

Katie Watmough

Principal

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